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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. clip — to cut
  3. fall — the season
  4. swing — to play on
  5. fall — to drop
  6. current — of water
  7. current — electric
  8. fall — to drop
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. swing — in golf
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. swing — music
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. clip — for paper
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. clip — a video
  21. sharp — clever
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. current — happening now

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com